The functionalist approach to crime and deviance

Functionalists think that society is a stable system of shared values, beliefs, goals, and norms, which are we refer to as a value consensus Because of this position it is a structuralist consensus theory The functionalist society is based on two main things: socialisation and social control Socialisation: values and a shared culture is internalised into its members and they feel they know what is right and wrong to do in society Social control: rewards and punishment for doing the right and wrong things, more opportunities with a clean criminal record and prison if you are deviant Society is seen as an organic system in which all components fulfil a particular function to ensure that society works effectively. Functionalists believe that crime, as long as it doesn’t reach a harmful level, plays a useful role in maintaining order

Durkheim

Believed that all societies required a collective conscience (shared rules, laws, norms and values) to function However, people are naturally self seeking so not every member can be equally committed to the collective conscience There is always the possibility that this may collapse and thus crime and deviance are inevitable features of any social order

Crime is inevitable Durkheim argued that crime is an inevitable and normal aspect of life Crime is present in all types of societies, indeed the crime rate is higher in the more advanced, industrialised countries It is inevitable because not every member of society can be equally committed to the collective conscience Durkheim says that, its inevitable because some people just aren’t socialised adequately as we are all individuals and have different experiences, influences and circumstances Also, modern societies promote a diverse and specialised labour force and a diversity of subcultures; which can divide individuals and groups making the value consensus blurred creating crime and deviance, anomie (normlessness)

The positive functions of crime (2)

Crime is not only inevitable – it is functional Durkheim argued it only becomes dysfunctional when its rate is unusually high or low He argues that all social change begins with some form of deviance If the collective conscience is too strong then there will be little deviance and little change or progress Conversely if there is little collective conscience there will be too much crime and deviance and individuality rises and the status quo breaks down. This is what Durkheim referred to as anomie- the loss of shared and guiding principles and norms- normlessness

1) Boundary maintenance Crime produces a reaction from society, members come together against the criminal Punishment serves to strengthen shared values and promote solidarity. the courtroom cases which are publicised affirm right and wrong boundaries Crime and deviance is necessary in order to reinforce the accepted parameters of behaviour As crime produces a reaction from society, unifying its members in condemnation of the wrongdoer and reinforcing their commitment to the shared norms and values Durkheim views the purpose of punishment of the wrongdoer is to reaffirm societys shared rules and reinforce social solidarity Crime can also uphold societys values eg prostitution- the family stays intact – the stabilisation of adult personalities still exist- breadwinner and homemaker there

2) Adaptation and change All change starts with deviance as change is a deviation from norms. Individuals with new ideas will naturally challenge existing norms. If this is not allowed to happen the society will stagnate. Too much control would crush revolutionary spirits preventing change and repressing individuals A02: the behaviour of the suffragettes was seen as both criminal and deviant, however it paved the way for change so that women could vote

Summary Crime is normal, inevitable and functional Durkheim noted that crime was a feature of all societies and suggested it must therefore have a positive function He argued that crime and punishment maintain social solidarity through establishing moral boundaries and strengthening the collective conscience; the beliefs and values shared by a community Responding to crime helps to emphasise conformity and moral standards because crime brings people together in condemning the deviant For Durkheim, crime free society could never be achieved. Without crime he felt societies would be extremely repressive and incapable of adapting to social change Crime, deviance and punishment are therefore both functional for a healthy society. This supports the idea that crime/deviance are socially constructed- they are both created by and a reaction to the social order

Evaluation of functionalism (Durkheim) Highlight how crim and deviance has a positive purpose Has different functions in different societies- relates back to the social construction of crime and deviance He neglects on analysis of the forms that deviance may take He doesn’t attempt to ask why certain groups appear to be more prone than others to commit forms of deviance Functions of crime and deviance does not provide an explanation for them in the first place Merton: he failed to explain why people are deviant

Other functions of crime Davis: safety valve: crime can act as a release of stress in society. Davis argues that prostitution releases a mans sexual frustrations without threatening the nuclear family-> maintains family structure, stable nf- instrumental and expressive role, stabilisation of adult personalities, can provide adequate socialisation Cohen: warning light: statistics like truancy and suicide highlight serious issues in society, high rates of truancy may tell us that there are problems with the education system and that policy makers need to make appropriate changes to it

Merton: strain theory

Uses the term ‘non-conformity’ rather than deviance which he believes leads to a wide interpretation of deviant behaviour He sees conformist and non conformist behaviour as a consequence of the culture of society itself Tries to explain why people are non conforming, he suggests that people try crime and do stuff that’s deviant because they might not be able to achieve legitimate goals by legitimate means that are in the societies ‘value consensus’ This is not just a structural explanation but it combines cultural factors like the emphasis on successful goals and the lack of emphasis on the legitimate means to get them Argued that non conformity resulted from the culture and structure of society itself (structuralist) He beings from the standard functionalist position of value consensus- that is, all members of society share the same values According to merton, culture especially western, attaches great importance to the values of competition, success and wealth

Merton adapted durkheims concept of anomie to explain deviance Merton adapted durkheims concept of anomie to explain deviance. Mertons explanation combines 2 elements Structural factors Cultural factors Societys unequal opportunity structure The strong emphasis on success goals and weaker emphasis on using legitimate means to achieve them

For merton, deviance is the result of a strain between two things The goals that a cultural encourages individuals to achieve What the institutional structure of society allows them to achieve legitimately

The American dream Deviance is the strain between what a culture encourages an individual to achieve and what a society actually allows you to achieve legitimately. The American dream encourages ‘money success’ by hard work and education encourages ‘money success’ by hard work and education The ideology explains that American society is meritocratic yet is full of discrimination and poverty that block opportunities The myth of meritocracy: not everyone has an equal chance of success due to stratification within society Merton believed that so much emphasis is placed on material success that many people deviate from legitimate means and goals when they cannot achieve them

The strain to anomie The resulting strain between the cultural goal of money success and the lack of legitimate opportunities to achieve it produces frustration, and thus in turn creates a pressure to resort to illegitimate means such as crime and deviance. Merton calls this the pressure to deviate the strain to anomie As not everyone has an equal chance of achieving societys goals, there exists a strain (tension) between the socially accepted goals and the socially acceptable means of achieving them Merton argues that deviance arises when the approved ways of achieving goals don’t correspond with the actual situation individuals are in. in these circumstances, anomie occurs

Mertons typology

conformity Individuals accept the culturally approved goals and strive to achieve them legitimately This is most likely among m/c who have good opportunities to achieve, but merton sees it as the typical response of most americans Eg university educated profession Have the means to achieve the goals Accept both societys goals and menas

Innovation Individuals accept the goal of money success but use ‘new’, illegitimate means such as theft or fraud to achieve it eg drug dealer Those at the lower end of the class structure are under greatest pressure to innovate Factors such as poor educational qualifications or unemployment mean that some people cant achieve goals by approved means, so they turn to crime as an alternative Have goals but not the legitimate means to get there – turn to illegitimate means Accept goals but not means- use illegitimate means of achieving wealth Eg organised crime gang member or petty thief. Commits utilitarian crime w/c due to inadequate socialisation

Ritualism Individuals girl up on trying to achieve the goals, but have internalised the legitimate means and so they follow the rules for their own sake Not actively pursuing wealth. Refers to those who have given up the pursuit of socially valued goals but still conform to rules and regulations and derive satisfaction from fairly meaningless jobs eg teacher, civil servant This is typical of lower m/c office workers in dead in routine jobs Do not accept cultural goals but do accept the means Eg routine office worker who follows rules but has no interest in promotion or a career Lower m/c – may have been overly socialised to conform

Retreatism Individuals reject both the goals and the legitimate means and become dropouts A small number of people reject both the goals and the means, by dropping out of society Tramps, addicts etc Do not accept goals or means Eg drop outs of society

Rebellion Individuals reject the existing society goals and means but then replace them with new ones in a desire to bring about revolutionary change and create a new kind of society Rebels include political radicals, revolutionaries and counter cultures eg hippies Reject societies goals and means and replace them with new ones that offer revolutionary change Want to create a new social order

Evaluation of mertons theory Strengths Weaknesses Offers an explanation of w/c crime Takes into account structural inequalities (Social position that can explain deviant behaviour) It demonstrates well that in capitalist societies, a lot of crime is motivated by monetary gain Merton focuses on individual responses not groups like age, ethnicity and locality and how they have their own patterns in crime. Crime and deviance tends to be collective He doesn’t really explain how most people who are under the same strain don’t turn to crime Doesn’t explain how they could be perfectly respectable people who seem to be obtaining their success by legitimate means, but actually doing illegal things like white collar crime Not all crime is motivated by monetary gain